Ontario lottery delays launch of online gambling site
PlayOLG.ca was scheduled to go live this autumn but delays in development have pushed launch date back indefinitely
The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation has delayed the launch of its PlayOLG.ca website in order to further develop its platform.
In an interview with eGR North America earlier this year, OLG chief exec Rod Phillips (pictured) said the site, the first to offer regulated online gambling in the state of Ontario, would go live this autumn. But now a spokesman for the OLG says no official date has been set for the launch.
“We are in active development of what will be Ontario’s only regulated internet gaming site. It is important to get it right. We have been observing the international industry to ensure we have the best practices in place for our offering. When we have a launch date, we will announce it,” he said.
The OLG is working with SPEILO G2 to develop its platform, with a focus on game and product selection, building responsible gaming tools, account history tools, player protection and data analysis, and player registration tools.
“There are ways of launching a site quicker, for example vendors can ‘skin’ existing websites and re-brand them. However, with the expediency of that process, you also lose control of the content. That is not an option for OLG,” the spokesman added.
Philips said that Lotto Max and Lotto 649, two of Canada’s largest recognised national lottery games, would be the first to make their debut “ shortly followed by slots, table games, poker, sports betting and bingo, as products were unveiled during the course of three to four launch phases.
The PlayOLG.ca site went live in January this year, and currently provides information on the OLG’s egaming programme.